Analysis of Work
Elizabeth Barrett Browning 1806 (Kelloe) – 1861 (Florence)
WHAT are we set on earth for ? Say, to toil;
Nor seek to leave thy tending of the vines
For all the heat o' the day, till it declines,
And Death's mild curfew shall from work assoil.
God did anoint thee with his odorous oil,
To wrestle, not to reign; and He assigns
All thy tears over, like pure crystallines,
For younger fellow-workers of the soil
To wear for amulets. So others shall
Take patience, labor, to their heart and hand
From thy hand and thy heart and thy brave cheer,
And God's grace fructify through thee to
The least flower with a brimming cup may stand,
And share its dew-drop with another near.
Scheme | ABBAABBACDEFDE |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1111111111 1111110101 11011011101 011101111 11011111001 1101110101 11110111 1101010101 1111001101 1101011101 1110110111 0111111 01101010111 0111110101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 606 |
Words | 116 |
Sentences | 5 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 14 |
Lines Amount | 14 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 475 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 115 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 07, 2023
- 35 sec read
- 160 Views
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"Work" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/10413/work>.
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